Monday, October 05, 2015

Piper PA-46 301P Malibu, N9126V, Grand River Emergency Department Consultants LLC: Fatal accident occurred October 13, 2014 in Dubuque, Iowa



Ann Butzier, widow of Dr. Doug Butzier, sits with her children (from left) Chris Chapman, 16; Sarah Chapman, 18; and Ben Chapman, 16, at their Dubuque home. 

 Dr. Douglas J. Butzier MD


One year after a single-engine plane crashed on the outskirts of Dubuque, killing its pilot, questions remain.

The National Transportation Safety Board still has not determined the probable cause of the Oct. 13 crash, which killed local physician and U.S. Senate candidate Doug Butzier. A preliminary report released in November notes that Butzier utilized an instrument-based flight plan but contains few other details.

Butzier's widow, Ann, said she has accepted that exactly what led to her husband's fatal crash might never be known. But his legacy and what he meant to the community have always been crystal clear, she said.

"People have, to this day, (come up) and tell me their stories about him and how he touched them somehow," Ann said, noting her husband's humility. "I don't think he had any idea the lives he touched or the impact he made."

THE CRASH

Butzier, an emergency room doctor and Libertarian Senate candidate, was flying home from a campaign event in West Des Moines the night of the crash. He was flying in from Ankeny, Iowa, and was scheduled to land at Dubuque Regional Airport at about 11 p.m.

Butzier was relying on instruments, rather than sight, during his approach, possibly due to rainy weather.

"He had made his approach, (was) unable to get the runway in sight and did a standard missed-approach procedure," said Todd Dalsing, the airport's operations manager.

At some point during the second landing attempt, Butzier's plane went down. Wreckage of the single-engine plane came to rest between two residential properties on Military Road.

Key West Fire Chief Brian Arnold was one of the first responders on scene. Firefighters secured the scene, extinguished a small fire and blocked off roads in the area, he said.

"A lot of debris (was) scattered around," Arnold said. "(The plane) had impacted the tree after it hit the ground and slid up into the yard."

With 36 years of firefighting under his belt, Arnold has been present for the aftermath of multiple crashes and disasters. He said the plane's final resting spot showed how close the already tragic situation came to being substantially worse.

"It basically came up between two houses," Arnold said. "It could have been definitely a lot worse had it gone into one of those two houses."

THE DOCTOR

A young Doug Butzier had lofty career ambitions, according to Ann Butzier.

"He wanted to be Smokey the Bear when he graduated," she recalled. "He loved the outdoors and wanted to be in forestry."

Early in his career, Butzier worked as a firefighter in Montana. The job required him to frequent local hospitals, where he developed a passion for emergency medicine.

Butzier eventually returned to school and became a doctor. For 17 years prior to his death, he worked in the emergency department at Mercy Medical Center-Dubuque.

He was president of Mercy's medical staff, served on the hospital's board of trustees and was medical director for the Dubuque and Asbury fire departments.

Ann described her late husband as "adventurous," but "no frills."

"(When) I met the guy, he had one pair of jeans," she said. "He was a down-to-earth, T-shirts and tennis shoes kind of a guy. A humble, everyday kind of guy."

Sarah Chapman, Butzier's stepdaughter, agreed.

"He just would have thought that all this fuss over him was ridiculous," she said. "He didn't think he was a big deal."

In the months since Butzier's death, multiple organizations have honored the late doctor. He was awarded the Star of Life during the Dubuque Emergency Medical Services annual dinner and a scholarship for EMS students was created in his honor.

This year, Ann will begin presenting the Doug Butzier Award for Excellence in Emergency Nursing, she said.

"Those nurses were real special to him," Ann said. "They were a huge part of his everyday work there."

The backyard of Ann's home also is a testament to Butzier, she said. He spent months hand-building a deck and pool on the steep, heavily wooded property.

The project was completed just months before his death.

"This summer has been unusually special," she said. "The people that have come here to enjoy this masterpiece of a backyard. ... That makes me find a little bit of peace in that."

ANSWERS

Keith Holloway, a public affairs officer with the NTSB, said it's not unusual for investigators to take 12 to 18 months before releasing a probable cause report for an airplane crash.

While investigation of the scene and wreckage is completed soon after the incident, follow-up work can be more time consuming.

"A lot of the work really takes place afterwards," Holloway said. "That's going through (records), the pilot's medical history, licensing. ... That's part of the process."

Holloway said he could not provide specific details about the investigation and described it as "ongoing."

Ann Butzier said she does not believe the crash was due to pilot error. She said something must have occurred that Butzier could not overcome.

"Anybody who flew with him, they just know he was such a good pilot," Ann said. "He was calm and meticulous. He's been in trouble up there before, and he's been able to handle anything."

Source:  http://www.thonline.com
  
http://registry.faa.gov/N9126V  

NTSB Identification: CEN15FA008 
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Monday, October 13, 2014 in Dubuque, IA
Aircraft: PIPER PA 46-310P, registration: N9126V
Injuries: 1 Fatal.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

On October 13, 2014, approximately 2305 central daylight time, a Piper PA-46 airplane, N9126V, collided with trees and impacted the ground near a residential area following a missed approach to Runway 36 at the Dubuque Regional Airport (DBQ), Dubuque, Iowa. The private pilot, who was the sole occupant, sustained fatal injuries. Dark night Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed throughout the area and during the approach. An Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) flight plan was filed for the flight which was conducted under the provisions of Federal Code of Regulations Part 91. The flight originated from the Ankeny Regional Airport (IKV), Ankeny, Iowa, about 2200, and its destination was DBQ.


Flight Standards District Office: FAA Des Moines FSDO-61 

Any witnesses should email witness@ntsb.gov, and any friends and family who want to contact investigators about the accident should email assistance@ntsb.gov.

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